EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Consumers can expect to pay extra when purchasing their next cup of joe.
With the recent sweeping tariffs of 10% placed on imports from nearly every U.S. foreign trading partner, industries nationwide are bracing for price hikes. This includes your go-to coffee shop.
Moca House Cafe in West El Paso is among the many small businesses nationwide that plan to adjust their menu prices to accommodate for the increased price of imports.
“We always have to purchase coffee every two weeks, and just recently, the last order that we had placed had increased by about 20%,” owner Ahmed Abdaljalil.
Abdaljalil started his small business in 2023 by selling tea products at local farmers markets. By September 2024, he expanded to a brick-and-mortar location. The cafe sits at the corner of Sunland Park Drive and North Mesa and serves a number of specialty lattes and teas, most of which use imported ingredients.
“Our coffee comes from Latin America. It also comes from Saudi Arabia. Some of it comes from Yemen. Our famous tea comes straight from Yemen. Our cardamom, our spices come from Guatemala. So almost everything is imported,” Abdaljalil said.
Abdaljalil says the recent tariffs placed by the Trump Administration will put a strain on local businesses who cannot eat the costs that chain corporations can, resulting in handing those fees down to the consumer.
“Everything just has skyrocketed — from coffee to tea to even the cups. We’re trying to find other suppliers that are manufacturing here in the United States to kind of lower the prices, so we don’t take on the tariffs, but of course, with those, because of demand, everyone else is doing the same. Every other coffee shop is also purchasing from the United States,” he said.
The uncertainty in the global economy has Abdaljalil concerned about the future of his business and hopes customers will be patient as he and other small shops navigate the rapidly changing market.
“We’re not doing this out of greed. We’re doing that because it’s out of our control. I think that plays a big factor in the prices. That’s why we’re having to increase the prices so much. No one knows if we should continue to be purchasing, importing or if we should start looking for suppliers here in the United States, we don’t know how long it’s going to take,” Abdaljalil said.
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